Canada's COVID-19 caseload close to 200,000

Ontario is urging families in four COVID-19 hot spots to hold off on trick-or-treating as the country inches towards marking 200,000 cases of the illness.

The province's chief medical officer of health, Dr. David Williams, issued the recommendations this morning, roughly a week after Canada's top public health doctor said families should follow local health guidelines when celebrating Halloween.

There are 199,893 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus as of noon today, which includes 9,770 deaths and 168,689 resolved cases.

Quebec continues to lead in new daily cases, reporting 1,038 cases and six more deaths today - the fourth consecutive day it has seen more than 1,000 new infections.

Ontario, meanwhile, reported 704 new cases and four new deaths.

The province has reinstated stricter health measures in four regions - Toronto, Peel Region, York Region and Ottawa - and Williams recommended against traditional Halloween activities in those four areas.

The tighter rules, which include closing gyms and movie theaters and barring indoor dining in restaurants or bars, kick in for York Region today but took effect earlier this month in the other three hot spots. </